“Commercial building automation,” or “commercial automation,” refers to the use of computer and information technology to control commercial building systems, such as lighting, HVAC, audio-visual, smoke detection, security, and shading, among others. Using specialized hardware and control logic, building devices can monitor their environment and can be controlled automatically. Although commercial automation has been available at some level of sophistication for some time, it steadily becomes more practical, both from a technological and cost perspective.
Lighting automation, in particular, has evolved over time. Lighting systems now exist in which luminaires that comprise sensors, lamps, and control logic are networked together, in what is sometimes referred to as “connected lighting” or networked “smart lighting.” In such a network, the sensors that are associated with the luminaires collect data about the local environment, such as data related to occupancy and data related to ambient lighting in the vicinity of the luminaires. The networked luminaires communicate with each other, in some cases sharing the sensor data, and adjust the light output of the lamps via the control logic, with some level of coordination across the networked luminaires.
Commercially-available, connected-lighting control strategies already exist that rely on, for example, i) scheduling, ii) occupancy-based control, which includes the switching off of all lights when an office space is vacant, and iii) lumen maintenance with tuning. These approaches are intended to help conserve energy in office buildings.
In addition to energy conservation, there are other issues to consider in planning and implementing a lighting control strategy. While switching on lights only in occupied areas within a building would be best for conserving energy, it is also important to consider a building occupant's comfort and productivity. To this end, specific considerations might include i) providing the proper quantity and quality of light at the proper time to a given space based on personal preference, time of day, and even the type of tasks to complete, and ii) providing comfortable lighting conditions in the immediate vicinity of occupants that are moving and appropriate lighting levels (e.g., reduced levels, etc.) in the leading and trailing areas along the occupant's path.